Those in the San Francisco area may have a chance to be part of an extraordinary beta test in the near future. According to Reuters, GM’s Cruise Automation subsidiary wants to test its self-driving cars with the general public.
We say near future because there is no solid timeframe for when a public beta would open up. Cruise currently runs its “Cruise Anywhere” ride-sharing service for internal employees only. The service allows a self-driving Chevrolet Bolt EV to pick up the employee with no human input whatsoever. Per California law, there’s still a human in the driver’s seat, however.
Regulatory approval would be needed to operate such a program, but Cruise spokespeople did not comment any further on the possibility of such a program or when it would roll out.
Cruise Automation has been quickly developing self-driving car technology for GM since the automaker purchased the company last year. Though, GM has been pretty hands off on the entire operation and consistently says it let’s Cruise Automation operate like a start-up. Most recently, the subsidiary unveiled its third-generation self-driving car based on the Chevrolet Bolt EV and says more prototypes will continue to be developed in the near future.
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